Marcus Lopés

Author

Writing Life

Slow it Down

by 1 Comment

Run to, and around the perimeter of, Hyde Park.

Finally, it’s crossed off my bucket list for London. You know, it wasn’t the distance from my hotel in St. John’s Wood to the entrance near Marble Arch (2.5 km) that held me back. Besides, when I get out for a run these days as I train for the Toronto Waterfront Marathon, I’m putting in a minimum of 10 km. No, it took me a long time to scratch this challenge off my bucket list because running through the streets of London terrifies me. [Read more…] about Slow it Down

Cutting Out the Noise

by 3 Comments

Chasing down big dreams, another lesson I’ve learned is this: cut out the noise.

Battling Social Media

For me, that ‘noise’ is social media — Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn and e-mail. We could argue (I won’t, though) that smartphones make our lives easier. But the new norm is for us to be available 24/7. Scared we’re going to miss out on something, we’re always reaching for our phones (next time you’re outside, take a moment to observe the number of people walking with their heads down and glued to their devices). And the tendency to stay connected all the time can kill productivity. [Read more…] about Cutting Out the Noise

Will You Rise Up?

by Leave a Comment

Some things stick to you the way the goodness of Martha Stewart’s golden caramels cling to all the tiny crevasses of your teeth (here’s the recipe; my peeps rave about them when I make them à la Marcus). And since discovering it years ago, Eleanor Roosevelt’s advice has stuck to me: “You must do the thing you think you cannot do.” It’s been a compelling call to action to rise up. [Read more…] about Will You Rise Up?

After the Fall…

by Leave a Comment

I wish you could have been there with me. But if you’re like most ‘normal’ people, you were probably still sleeping.

It was Saturday, 28 June 2019, and at 5:30 am I left my condo for my morning run. When I hit the Martin Goodman Trail, and even though the sun was on the rise, I could only see a couple of hundred yards ahead due to the thick fog. Running away from the downtown core towards the Humber Bay Arch Bridge, the view was spectacular. The fog blanketing the city rendered the CN Tower — all the buildings, actually — invisible. I usually run without stopping, but this time I planned to stop and capture the view. [Read more…] about After the Fall…